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Monopoli: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Bari, Puglia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Monopoli

The report looks at the exact point: landslide and flood risk, seismic zone, price per square metre for the area, services and nearby stops.

For example: Via Vittorio Veneto 1, Monopoli.

Monopoli, the old harbour, rocky coves and the countryside

Monopoli faces the Adriatic south of Bari, its old town enclosed by walls, the castle of Charles V and the old harbour where fishing boats are moored. The coastline is long and jagged, with small coves among the rocks and beaches further south; inland the ground rises gently into hills thick with ancient olive trees and masserie, the fortified farmhouses of Puglia. The station on the Adriatic line links the town to Bari and Lecce.

In recent years Monopoli has become a major tourist destination. Many houses in the old town have been turned into holiday lets and B&Bs, and in summer the town fills up. Overture Maps data record 408 bars and restaurants, 8.53 per 1,000 residents against 5.00 in the province of Bari. Anyone buying to live here all year should expect traffic and difficult parking in the warm months.

The countryside is split into many contrade, rural districts dotted with trulli, stone lamie and small houses. For a home outside town, road access, mains water, drainage and the legality of extensions and pools all matter, because many rural buildings have been altered over time.

Istat, the national statistics office, recorded 47,857 residents in 2023, down 1.4% on 2011. Over-65s make up 24.6%, a little more than in the province (23.7%), and foreign residents 2.3%.

Seismic hazard is among the lowest in Puglia: Monopoli is in zone 4 on the Civil Protection Department's scale, like 6 other municipalities in the province, with an expected acceleration of about 0.055 g. In the old town's stone houses, damp and salt air matter more. The lame, natural gullies that carry rainwater to the sea, can flood during heavy storms, and the report checks the official maps for the address. The Revenue Agency publishes the land registry maps.

Key points

  • Old town on the harbour, rocky coves, masserie and trulli inland.
  • 408 bars and restaurants, a lot for the population.
  • Seismic zone 4, expected acceleration about 0.055 g.
  • Country houses: check access, drainage and extensions.

Overview

Monopoli is a municipality in the province of Bari, in Puglia. At the end of 2023 it had 47,857 residents, among the most populous in the province (5 of 41).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Monopoli is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. Only 7 of 41 municipalities in the province are in zone 4.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.055 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

In zone 4 the risk is low, but for an older building it is still worth asking about the state of the structure.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 1.4%. The estimated average age is 47 years, in line with the province. 25% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 2.3% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Monopoli declared an average taxable income of 20,670 euros, below the provincial average (21,788 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Monopoli is in climate zone C, with 1,066 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 November to 31 March, for up to 10 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 9 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Monopoli has 33 schools and 15 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 36 grocery shops and supermarkets, 37 healthcare facilities, 51 sports facilities and 15 parks and green areas.

There are 0.8 grocery shops and supermarkets per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.6).

Public transport

We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 12.9% of the land in Monopoli, compared with 9.7% in the province and 8.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 7.2 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Monopoli is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Puglia in 2025. According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is low. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.

Official databases list 2 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Monopoli, and 3 more have been cleaned up or closed. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Monopoli: the report checks the address against the ISPRA maps.

House prices

The Revenue Agency's price ranges per square metre (OMI) apply to zones, not to whole municipalities: the report gives the range for the address's zone.

Land registry

The cadastral maps for Monopoli are public: from the address the report finds the sheet and parcel number.

Liveability area by area

The Vicinalia liveability index runs from 0 to 100 and looks at the place, not the people who live there: services within walking distance, transport, green space, natural hazards, air, quiet, buildings and connection. Here it is worked out at the centre of each of the 213 inhabited census areas in Monopoli. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 79 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 3.6%
  • fair 24.1%
  • good 34.2%
  • very good 38.0%

Vicinalia index by census area, licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Data: IdroGEO ISPRA (2026), Istat, INGV, EEA, AGCOM, Overture Maps and OpenStreetMap.

The colour is the value at the centre of the area. For an exact address, search for it above: the free check looks at that exact point. How the index is worked out

Data sources

ISTAT code 072030. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.